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Uganda: Stanbic Robbed of 1.2b/-
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The Monitor (Kampala)
6 November 2007
Posted to the web 5 November 2007
Joseph Mugisa, Felix Basiime and Rodney Muhumuza
Bundibugyo
ROBBERS broke into Stanbic Bank's Bundibugyo branch and made off with at least Shs1.2 billion, most of it meant to buy cocoa from producers in the district.
The bloodless robbery took place during the early morning of November 4 after night guards unsuspectingly took a meal spiked with sedatives and slept the night away, according to Mr Martin Abilu, the police commander for the western region.
"Two ladies came to the bank before 10p.m. (on Saturday night), befriended the guards before they offered them dry cocoa powder and mince meat which is likely to have been adulterated," Mr Abilu told a press conference in Fort Portal yesterday.
"The women knew that the food contained some drugs that would doze off the guards later."
And when the robbers arrived, at around 3 am, the two guards on duty--Mr David Baguma and Mr Prosper Byamukama-were fast asleep. The intruders eventually located the keys for the money safes with ease, Mr Abilu said, revealing that cocoa traders had earlier in the week banked huge sums meant to buy cocoa from farmers in the area.
Bundibugyo is the top cocoa-producing district in the country. Police in Fort Portal are holding two of the bank's staff, Mr Robert Mpangire and Mr Andrew Mwesigwa, who are suspected of conspiring with the robbers.
"The two suspects kept the keys for the money safes in the strong room, contrary to the laws of the bank, and the robbers seem to have known all the rooms of the bank," Mr Abilu said. Also in custody are two cleaners at the bank, Ms Antonate Mbumbu and one Senge. Police were set to interrogate the branch's manager, Ms Hilda Musinguzi, and all the guards.
It was not mentioned whether the branch's manager would be treated as a suspect. "The guards and the suspected bankers are to blame for the robbery because the guards befriended the women while on duty while the bankers carelessly kept the keys," Mr Abilu said. "Serious measures have been put in place to track the thugs and recover the money."
The robbers and the women who allegedly supplied the spiked food are still at large. Police reported that in the rush to make a quick exit, the robbers panicked and left behind Shs173,380,000 - money that was recovered from the bank's floor long after the intruders had left.
In recent times, there have been several heists targeting Stanbic Bank branches or bullion vans, the most bizarre of which was the armed robbery in January this year at Stanbic Bank's IPS branch in Kampala. The robbery was said to have been orchestrated by some staff, police said at the time, citing the robbers' apparently impeccable understanding of the bank's internal processes.
Stanbic Bank's communications manager, Mr Daniel Nsibambi, said yesterday that the bank's huge presence in the country makes it more vulnerable to robbery. The bank suffered two robberies in 2005, all of them executed in the eastern part of Uganda.
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"With over 70 branches we are more exposed, but we are working with the police to reinforce our security," Mr Nsibambi said yesterday. "We just like to reassure our customers [in Bundibugyo District] that everything is in control."
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